Milena says yes to Wood Wharf

At 175 cm, black hair long and glossy-straight, and a walk that makes the concierge look up, Milena does not arrive quietly. She is curvy and deliberately polished: immaculate hair, sharp tailoring, a patent heel, one piece of statement jewellery that looks borrowed from a magazine shoot. Her brown eyes are direct and amused. She dresses like an editorial and moves like someone with a train to catch, which means she is always on time.

Direct is the first thing guests remark on, glamorous the second, and fierce only if you watch her play tennis. Milena says what she thinks, orders what she wants and invites you to do the same. Her English is fluent and fast. She plays tennis twice a week and hates losing, throws pots at a ceramics studio on Sundays, and drinks espresso with a precision that borders on doctrine. She decides quickly, which is why she answers the desk in minutes.

Her Canary Wharf dinner is at Hawksmoor Wood Wharf, the steakhouse set on the water, where the windows put the dock on almost every side. She orders the steak rare without opening the menu and picks a red that stands up to it. Conversation moves fast, then slows as the water darkens and the newer towers of Wood Wharf light up across the basin. She is excellent at dinner and better still on the long walk afterwards.

Milena lives in South Kensington, around forty minutes east, and takes evenings and overnights, usually confirming within minutes. Hotels sit on the Canary Wharf page, the whole ladder on rates; write to booking once you know your hour.